The Columbian Exchange

Paper Summary:

This paper looks at the Columbian Exchange, an accidental byproduct of the Old World coming together with the New World which provided a forum for the exchange of many things including plants, animals and disease. It further discusses how the Columbian Exchange provided a massive transformation of the world's eco-system which had a significant impact on mankind.

Outline:
Introduction
How the Process Began
The Not so Nice Side of the Exchange
Understanding the Environmental Impact
Significance
Conclusion

From the Paper:

"The beginning of what is now referred to as the Columbian Exchange arrived during the second voyage to North America by Christopher Columbus and the 1,200 men he brought with him. It was at that time that Europeans arrived on North American soil. This event triggered a massive transformation of the global ecosystem because the arrival of the Europeans sparked the beginning of the two areas of the world sharing and trading flora, fauna and disease(Columbia pp). It was a time in which the Old World met with the New World and neither side was prepared ecologically for the onslaught that the introduction of eco-system elements to the environments would bring. "

Sample of Sources Used:

• _________. "Columbian Exchange." The Reader's Companion to American History; 1991
• Columbian Exchange (Accessed 3-20-06)http://daphne.palomar.edu/scrout/colexc.htm
• Columbian Exhange (accessed 3-20-06)http://www.umanitoba.ca/faculties/medicine/history/histories/plagues.html
• Fernandez, Felipe. "lThe Unending Frontier an Environmental History of the Early Modern World." History Today; 2003
• Horn, Miriam. "America before Columbus. U.S. News & World Report; 1991

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